Poultry Science Students Attend International Production and Processing Expo

Sara Landis

Bumpers College poultry science students who attended the College Student Career Program during the 2017 International Production and Processing Expo included (from left) Michael Kidd, Audrey Foster, Eleni Solberg, Zachary Cain and Joshua Lockhart.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Students from the U of A's Department of Poultry Science recently attended the 2017 International Production and Processing Expo held Jan. 31 to Feb. 2 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Georgia. IPPE is regarded as the largest annual trade show for the poultry, meat and feed industries.

More than 90 students combined from the Department of Poultry Science, the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, Crowder College in Neosho, Missouri, Eastern Oklahoma State College in Wilburton and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff made the trip and participated in the College Student Career Program held in conjunction with IPPE.

The College Student Career Program allows seniors and graduate students to interview with potential employers and underclassmen to interview for internships. In addition to interviews, students learned about the many career opportunities in the poultry industry and allied industries around the world.

"Attending IPPE was very beneficial to my academic success," said Brock Daniels, a sophomore poultry science and agricultural business double-major, who interviewed with major companies including Tyson Foods, Simmons Foods, Cal-Maine Foods, Maple Leaf Farms and Cobb-Vantress. "It allowed me to interview with companies and get a chance to apply what I have been learning in class."

Robert Hudgens, an agriculture business and animal science double-major, interviewed with Tyson Foods and Cal-Maine.

"Attending IPPE helped me become more confident in job interviews along with professional networking," said Hudgens, who has a production internship offer with Tyson Foods in Green Forest.

Danielle Edwards, a junior poultry science major, interviewed with Perdue Farms, Aviagen, Cal-Maine Foods and Tyson Foods.

"Attending IPPE was educational and a great experience," said Edwards. "I learned more about companies I've never heard of as well as got to know the companies I did know about a lot better."

Overall, nearly 600 students interested in careers in the poultry industry were in attendance. The program attracted students from 36 universities throughout the United States while the International Student Program brought in 12 students from six universities in Latin America.

The International Production and Processing Expo is a collaboration of three shows - International Feed Expo, International Meat Expo and the International Poultry Expo - representing the entire chain of protein production and processing. The event is sponsored by the American Feed Industry Association, the North American Meat Institute and the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association.

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.